You're Not Alone
by The Irish Raven
Summary: My take on what should've happened after "The Wrong Horse". Chloe is self harming, Evan isn't abusive and Ange is actually talking to her daughter. Rated for swearing and adult themes. TW self harm.
1. Chapter 1

A/N I don't own any of BBC Holby City characters, locations etc. This fic takes place after "The Wrong Horse" Evan is not abusive and Chloe is back talking to her mum.

Turquoise eyes met the same thousand shades of blue in the mirror. They were like the ocean far out from shore, at night. Appearing calm and lifeless, yet filled with life beneath the surface. The bright blue eyes reflected the harsh glare from the bare light bulb.

Chloe stood facing the mirror with the knife in her hand. It was clean and sharp and she liked it. Pressing hard into the pale skin on her left arm, she swiped away. The familiar line seeped blood, trickling towards her hand like a river. A wave of calm enshrouded her whole body, the pain a welcome feeling. Nevertheless, like oil and water, distress and calm cannot coexist for long. Soon, the torment resurfaced like oil above water and she cut again.

With 7 lines on her wrist, Chloe dropped the blade into the sink. The white tiles and sink were stained red with the blood spurting out of her wounds. Chloe clamped a wad of toilet paper to her arm and pulled the sleeve down under her scrubs.

"Come on Chloe," Evan yelled. Startled, Chloe chucked the knife in the bin, wiped the tears from her eyes and opened the bathroom door.

"You okay?" he asked

"Yeah, yeah." the Scot replied, "I'm fine." She hastily pulled the door shut so he couldn't see the blood. 'I'll deal with that later' she thought. Ensuring the cuts were covered by her sleeve, Chloe pulled on her jacket and the couple left together.

•••

Walking into the hospital car park, Chloe wandered into the road. She wasn't watching but luckily Evan was. The car swerved away from Chloe as Evan pulled her out of the way.

"Jesus, Chloe! What the hell are you doing?" Evan yelled gripping her arm. Chloe winced in pain for he had grabbed her wounds. Embarrassed, she tried to hide the pained expression on her face but Evan knew her all too well. He had seen her like this before. First the red pen, then the ignoring people and finally cutting. He thought he had stopped her when he found her in the toilets but clearly he was wrong. Confused, hurt, upset: Evan clasped her hand and pulled her into the lift.

Finding a quiet spot on Darwin wasn't hard since the infamous Jac Naylor was in charge. Stood in a tucked away corner of the ward, Evan pulled the sleeve up. Just like he expected, several angry red lines lay on Chloe's pasty wrists. "I'm so sorry," Chloe whispered between sobs. As he rubbed her back, Evan pulled her close while mentally cursing himself for letting the situation get so bad. Evan held her tight while muttering calming words to Chloe.

"I have to tell your mum," Evan murmured in her ear. A look of pure horror crept across her face as she leaped up out of Evan's lap and ran away. "Shit!" Evan muttered before heading back towards the lift.

Meanwhile, Chloe ran through the ward like a monster was chasing her. Seeing her opportunity, she grabbed a scalpel off an abandoned trolley and headed for the toilets. Despite knowing full well that Evan would probably look for her there, Chloe stood in the same cubicle as before. Leaning against the wall, she raised her navy blue scrub top and pressed the scalpel into her flat stomach. Soon, there were 4 thick lines on her abdomen. She broke down in tears. Chloe sat atop the closed toilet seat and sobbed. 'How selfish am I?' she thought ' I find out Evan is going to tell my mum so I can get help and what do I do, go and fucking cut myself' The young doctor continued weeping not noticing the pain or the crimson red blood soaking her top.

Back on YAU, Evan was trying to track down Ange. It was not going well. Some nurses were telling him she was in theatre and others thought she hadn't arrived yet. Helpfully, Ange arrived 20 minutes after Evan's search had started. 'God knows what Chloe's done in that time' he thought. Evan approached the older doctor and quickly pulled her away from the ward before she got bombarded by nurses asking questions. "Evan?" Ange called as she was pulled into the stairwell. Hastily, Evan explained the situation and saw the same look of horror on his girlfriend's mother. The pair raced up to Darwin, hoping beyond hope that Chloe hadn't done anything stupid.

Unaware of the events on YAU, Chloe exited the toilets and bumped into the one and only Jac Naylor. "Sorry," Chloe mumbled trying to avoid eye contact.

"Why have you got long sleeves on?" the senior consultant enquires, "We operate a clear below the elbow policy in this hospital. Do you have any explanation for this?"

"My shift hasn't started yet," the blonde replied, "I'll change in a minute."

"That won't be necessary." A familiar voice called from the lift. Spotting the kerfuffle, Ange decided to step in so she could protect her daughter.

"Excuse me!" Jac yelled, scoffing.

"Miss Campbell has asked to see Chloe in her office." It wasn't a lie, that's where they were going but it wasn't at Serena's request. Sighing, the redhead nodded and Chloe walked away nervously.

The red tinge on Chloe's scrubs was far more noticeable in daylight so both Evan and Ange spotted it as they walked down the stairs. Chloe was the first to break the unnerving silence by asking where they were going. "Miss Campbell's office" her mother replied.

"Wait, what?"

"Mr Hanssen is away this week so she's in charge. If you won't accept help from us, you need to inform the hospital. You're not fit to work." her boyfriend responded

"Okay fine," Chloe states. Internally, she was a nervous wreck. She couldn't let her acting boss know. What could she do?


	2. Chapter 2

The trio arrived on AAU. It was eerily quiet. Ange walked in front of Chloe and Evan behind so she couldn't escape. Chloe's hands shook. As she looked nervously at her feet outside Serena's office, she noticed the obvious stain on her stomach. "Shit"

Ange's sharp knock startled Serena. She was exhausted from her 2 roles that week: CEO and Lead Consultant on AAU. Serena was surprised to see the three doctors stood at her door despite knowing the instance surrounding Dom, Ange and Chloe.

"How can I help?" Serena asked, a fake smile plastered on her face.

"We're here about Chloe. There's a problem." Ange answered

"Affecting work?"

"Yes"

"Come on in then"

Ange moves towards the doorway.

"No," Chloe replied "I need to do this on my own"

"Okay" Ange stated as Chloe walked into the office and shut the door in her mum's face.

"So, what can I do for you today, Miss Goddard?"

"I...erm" Chloe replied, struggling to answer the question without disclosing her self harm. "A patient of mine died in surgery. It wasn't my fault but I feel so bad because I told her she'd be fine."

"Right..."

20 minutes later, Chloe exited the office and hurried past her mum and boyfriend.

"Did she tell you?" Evan asked.

"Yes. She seems a bit off but that makes sense with a patient dying"

"Wait, what?" Ange cried

"Was that not the problem?"

Both doctors shook their heads.

"Come on in then" Serena replied mentally sighing.

"Okay, so let me get this straight. Chloe has been cutting her arms." Serena clarified.

"Yes, and her stomach. Didn't you see the bloodstain on her scrubs and the long sleeves?" Evan replied

"No, I didn't see the stain. Sorry I'm very tired. I didn't take much notice of her sleeves. You two stay here. I'm going to phone Ms Naylor"

•••

"I'll arrange for a porter to take you to CT now, Mr Malone" Chloe told her patient as she put his file back. As soon as she turned around, she was faced with Jac.

"This way Miss Goddard, please" Jac said pointing towards her office.

"Have a seat." Jac told Chloe

"Okay..."

"Miss Campbell called," Jac's voice was softer than normal

'Shit. Please don't let Serena and Jac know about it' Chloe thought.

"She's told me about your... prob-...self harm." Jac continued. Chloe looked everywhere but the woman across the desk.

"Now, you have a choice. You can either talk to me or talk to Serena"

"I-I can't" Chloe whispered, trying not to cry

"Well it's either that or you talk to Hanssen tomorrow"

"I want to but I can't" Chloe was silently sobbing by now.

"Look," Jac's voice was calm and gentle "I get what you mean and your angry with your mum and Evan but they care about you. They want the best for you which means making sure you don't make mistakes at work"

"Where's my mum?" Chloe asked, sounding like a little girl again.

"She's with Serena. Should we go together?" Chloe gently nodded her head.

•••

As soon as Serena saw Jac, she stood up and opened the door.

"You go in and take a seat" Serena told Chloe

"She's very tearful but didn't tell me anything. She kept saying she 'can't' tell you but I'm not sure why" Jac said once the door was shut. The pair continued to talk about the situation and what Serena should do.

Inside the office, Chloe was sat in the chair on one side of the desk and Ange and Evan were seated on the sofa facing the side of the desk. It was very tense for none of them knew what to say. Chloe's eyes were red from all the crying and all Ange wanted to do was comfort her. However, she didn't as she knew it would make it worse.

Not 5 minutes later, Serena had re entered the office.

"Right..." Serena said as she sat in her chair, "Chloe, can you tell me what's going on?" Chloe remained silent.

"Can you explain the bloodstain on your top?" Chloe was once again silent. Serena looked helplessly at Ange and Evan.

"She cut her stomach this morning before the shift started" Evan stated

"Evan!" Chloe yelled, "What the hell?"

"Let's calm down a bit" Serena said softly, "I have a duty of care to you as an employee. I need to look at this cut."

"Okay" Chloe whispered, almost inaudible.

"Can you lift up your top up please?" Serena asked as she walked round the desk with her gloves on. Chloe grabbed the bottom of her top but didn't raise it. Instead, she eyed the 3 people staring at her stomach expectantly. Chloe's hands shook noticeably and she felt the wet dribble of tears on her cheeks. Ange stood cautiously and wiped the tears off her daughter's face. "It's okay, Chlo, we'll do it together. Yeah?" Ange suggested. Chloe nodded slightly and allowed her scrubs to be pulled up. The four gashes on her abdomen were wide and deep. The whole area was scarlet with dried blood. Serena was shocked but she hid it well. Calmly, Serena told Chloe they would need stitching and cleaning and asked Evan to get some equipment.

"Are there any more cuts, Chloe?" Ange asked. Even though both Serena and her knew she'd cut her wrist, they wanted it to come from Chloe.

Chloe nodded cautiously towards her arms. Ange acknowledged the signal and gently pulled up her left sleeve. There were 7 fresh cuts and at least a dozen old ones. Pulling up her right sleeve revealed an array of white scars and fading cuts. Both her arms and stomach were littered with red pen from an attempt to prevent herself from cutting. Evan returned and Chloe quickly pulled down her sleeves. She didn't want him to see her other arm or the more recent scars.

Serena tore the wrapping on an antiseptic wipe. "This might hurt" Serena warned.

"It's okay. I deserve it" Chloe responded. Ange's heart shattered into a thousand pieces as she realised the torment her daughter was going through. Serena cleaned Chloe's stomach and neatly stitched the wounds. Chloe dropped her shirt.

"Now..."Serena began before she was interrupted by a beeping noise.

"Sorry, I have to go" Evan said while reading his pager, "I'll see you later Chlo"

"No, I'm staying at mum's" Ange was secretly pleased

"Alright then. Call me later "

"Now, we have to discuss what we're going to do about you Chloe" Serena continued.

"What do you mean?"

"You're not fit to work in this state" Ange replied

"Yes and we care about you. So, now it's just us three, do you think you can tell me when this started?"

"Erm...a few months ago."

"Why didn't you tell me? Or Evan? Or anyone" Ange pleaded.

"I didn't tell you when I was 15, why would I tell you now?" Chloe barked

"Sorry, when you were 15?" Serena enquired

"She started cutting at 15 when she found out about her conception. I only found out when she bled through her white shirt." Ange told Serena

"Okay, now I understand quite how much of an emotional time this must be for all of you. I'm going to put a word in with one of the counsellors for you. You don't have to keep going, just 1 session and we'll go from there. Today though, I'd like you to go home."

"I'll go with her. My shift finished half an hour ago" Ange explained.

"Okay," Serena replied, "One last thing. Can you empty your pockets?"

"What..why?" Chloe questioned nervously.

"I can't let you hurt yourself again." Chloe stood as if she was going to leave but Ange was in the way of the door.

"You're not leaving Chloe" Ange remarked.

"Fine!" Chloe huffed as she put her hands in her trouser pockets. The left pocket was empty but the right wasn't. Chloe pulled out a tampon, a five pound note and her phone which she slammed on Serena's desk.

"And your top." Ange ordered. Reluctantly, Chloe complied and took out the red wad of tissue from that morning.

"Anything else?" Ange knew that Chloe had some blade on her. When she was a teen, Ange had regularly searched her and found a blade more often than not, no matter whether Chloe had cut recently or not. "Fuck's sake mum" Chloe muttered as she pulled out a small scalpel.

"Thank you Miss Goddard. You can go now," Serena spoke softly, "I'll email you about counselling. Mr Hanssen will be finding out about this tomorrow. If there's anything else, my door is always open"

"And you can always talk to me" Ange whispered comfortingly.

"I know" Chloe murmured.

Once the pair had left the office, Ange pulled Chloe over to one side. Grabbing both of her daughter's hands, Ange uttered faintly"You're not alone..."

A/N Please review. I know it's such a long time after the episode but I've been really busy and it's my first fanfic for Holby City and on


	3. Chapter 3

A/N I was disappointed with how dismissive Dom was when Ange told him in the cafe. It seemed like it was just easier for the writers to not involve him that much. So here's Dom and Ange more involved in Chloe's self harm.

"Everything okay?" Dom chimed

"Yeah, I need to talk to you about a patient later" Ange replied

"Don't lie!" Chloe demanded, "She needs to talk to you about me. I've been..."

"He already knows"

"What?!" Chloe yelled drawing the attention of some nearby nurses. Ange pulled both her children down the corridor away from the main ward.

"I told him when we were sat in the cafe before you arrived."

"Oh, that's what we're on about" Dom realised

"He doesn't know everything or anything about today" Ange continued "Why don't you come over later Dom? Then we can talk with you Chloe and you can decide what he finds out. "

Both Chloe and Dom nodded in agreement. "My shift finishes at 6. I'll be round at about half past" Dom announced

"We're just heading home now. See you later. " Ange replied

As Chloe announced she needed some clothes from her apartment, Ange pulled out of the hospital car park. Watching from her window, Serena was pleased that they had dealt with the situation so well. The journey home was very awkward. Despite Ange's attempts to make conversation, Chloe was silent and shy. Ange was worried about her daughter but glad that she agreed to talk to Dom.

When Chloe left the car to grab her things, Ange pulled out a bit of paper and wrote a list.

1\. No sharps

2\. Check bag

3\. Make sure she eats

4\. Tuesday: 4 on stomach, 7 on left wrist

Ange slid the list in her coat pocket as Chloe climbed in the car with her bag. For the rest of the journey, neither Ange nor Chloe spoke. As soon as they got in the house, Chloe ran up the stairs to her bedroom. Ange began to remove all the blades from the house. She took all the knives and scissors from the kitchen which she put in a locked box at the back of one of the cupboards. Upstairs, she removed all the razors from the bathroom. Finally, she went into Chloe's room to begin step 2.

Chloe was unsurprised by the knock on the door. She knew her mum would check her bag and pockets as soon as she'd cleared the sharps. Chloe was used to this so she'd moved the razor blade she brought from home and hidden it in her room. "Pockets and bag please" Ange called. Chloe turned her pockets to reveal the same contents as before minus the scalpel. She emptied the contents of her bag. Ange quickly rifled through before realising Chloe had probably moved any blades. "Arms and stomach please" Ange asked politely. Once again, Chloe complied as she was used to this happening ever since she was a teenager. Lifting her top and sleeves revealed nothing new. "Evan texted. He's finished his shift" Chloe told her mum

"Go downstairs and call him then" Ange said more of an order than a suggestion.

"I'll do it later" Chloe called, ignoring her Mum's tone.

"No, you'll do it now. I'm going to search your room!" Ange raised her voice to get Chloe to understand how serious she was. Quickly, Chloe scampered out of the door and rang Evan, hoping beyond hope her mum wouldn't find the blade hidden in the skirting board.

"Hey babe, how are you?" Evan asked

"I'm fine, at Mum's now" Chloe answered

"Do you want me to pop round later?"

"You can if you want. Dom's coming over for tea. I'll text you if I want you to come or if I've forgotten something."

"Okay. I love you"

"Love you too. Bye" Chloe heard footsteps as she hung up. Ange walked down the stairs and entered the kitchen where Chloe was stood.

"What's this?" Ange questioned as she held up a shiny blade

"I-it's...erm"

"It's a razor blade"

"Yeah" Chloe whispered meekly

"Chloe, none of this is going to work if you're going to keep secrets like this."

"I'm sorry. I just like to know I have one with me." Chloe lied.

"I'm trying to help you here. Now come and help me get dinner ready before your brother arrives."

•••

45 minutes later, the smell of chicken casserole filled the entire house. It was Chloe's favourite and Ange's best hope at getting Chloe to eat. A gentle knock on the door signalled Dom's arrival so Chloe went to greet him.

Ange and Chloe were sat at the dining room table when Dom came through. He was supposed to be plating up their meal but there was a problem.

"Where's all the knives?" he asked

"Cupboard next to the sink behind the pans. The combination is 1090." Chloe answered smugly

"How do you know that?" Ange cried

"It's not hard to crack a combination lock when you write down the code."

"I'm trying to keep you safe. How long have you known?" Dom went back into the kitchen.

"About 3 years. I've never used them" Chloe promised

"Why?"

"Never needed to. Always had a stash of my own blades." Chloe said dismissively. Ange was now concerned that Chloe still had tools.

"Dinner is served!" Dom cried happily as he put the 3 plates down. They all tucked in, even Chloe! Ange was very happy that her daughter was eating again.

Once they had all finished and cleared up, the family sat down in the living room. As Ange brought in their cups of tea, Chloe texted Evan asking him to bring her pink fluffy socks. She didn't need them, she wanted the blade stashed inside them.

"Well we can't ignore it all night. Do you want to start Chloe or should I?" Ange said as she sat down in an armchair.

"You can but I might stop you" Chloe replied.

"Alright. As you know Dom, Chloe has self harmed in the past." Ange began. She proceeded to tell Dom the events of that day. Dom listened intently as Chloe's face turned red from embarrassment and shame. She didn't exactly want Dom to know but she reasoned that he should because he was her brother. By the time Ange had finished telling the story, Chloe was internally begging for Evan to come so she could get her release.

"Are you okay to answer some questions?" Ange asked, drawing Chloe's attention back to the conversation.

"Er- yeah sure" Chloe responded nervously.

"Who knows about this?" Dom enquired

"You, Mum, Evan, Jac, Serena and Hanssen tomorrow" Chloe replied.

"What's with the red pen?"

"My therapist when I was at school said I should do it when I want to cut. It's sort of an attempt to not cut for the first time in ages and when I didn't have any blades on me"

"That makes sense. Where do you do it?"

Chloe looked at her feet and didn't answer. "On her ar-" Ange began before she was interrupted

"No Mum!" Chloe yelled. Somebody knocked on the door and Chloe took her opportunity to leave the room.

Stood on the doorstep was Evan clutching a pair of hot pink fluffy socks. Chloe opened the door and he stepped inside. She took the socks as he hugged her and gently kissed her forehead. Chloe grabbed his hand and the couple walked into the lounge together. "Evan just popped round to bring my socks and check in on us" Chloe told them.

"Do you want a cup of tea?" Ange offered

"Yeah that'd be thanks." Evan replied gratefully

"I'm just going to the toilet" Chloe announced as she left to climb the stairs.

Once she'd locked the door, Chloe put down the toilet seat and sat on it. Unravelling the socks revealed a shiny blade from a disposable razor. It was the first razor she ever took to her skin and the only one since that hadn't been found. Chloe twiddled the blade between her fingers. She so desperately wanted an escape from the distress but she knew she'd be letting down herself and all the people who cared about her, 3 of whom were sat downstairs. You're so worthless. Nobody likes you. You deserve to hurt. You've let them down already, what's one more time? With negative words whirring round her mind, Chloe yanked up her top and sliced her stomach vertically. It was agony but that was what she wanted. The gash was long but superficial. Being a doctor helped Chloe know how badly she would bleed. She held a bunch of loo roll to the wound and dropped her hoodie. However, she wasn't done. Chloe pulled up the right sleeve of her hoodie, grateful that she'd chosen to change into baggy clothes. The sleeve ended at her elbow so she had full access to her forearm. Looking away, Chloe slashed her arm 3 times. Instantly, the blood flowed red as the easy trickle down her arm began. Without thinking, Chloe stood and rinsed her arm under cold water. It hurt. Chloe felt good. She continued her rituals of cleaning while downstairs, they were getting agitated.

"Do you think she's alright?" Dom asked.

"I'm not convinced. I'll go check on her. " Ange replied

"Chloe! Are you okay?" Ange yelled up the stairs.

'Fuck' Chloe thought. The third cut on her arm was bleeding more than she expected. "Yeah. I'll be down in a minute"

"Okay." Chloe continued keeping pressure on the wound so the bleeding would cease.

Five minutes later, Ange called up the stairs, "Come on Chloe!"

"Maybe she's just changing if you know what I mean." Evan suggested to Ange

"What?" Dom asked

"It's that time of the month" Evan mouthed to Dom as Ange yelled that she was sending Evan up to break the door down. Getting flustered, Chloe shoved the bloody paper into the toilet, flushed it and slipped the razor into her joggers pocket. As Evan climbed the stairs, Chloe slipped the fluffy socks on and opened the door.

"Are you sure you're okay?" Evan asked

"Yeah, no I'm fine"

"Feelings Inside Not Expressed"

"Just regular, ordinary fine!" Chloe huffed


	4. Chapter 4

Evan watched curiously as Chloe stomped down the stairs. 'Maybe it's just PMS' Evan reasoned. He raced down the stairs once Chloe had gone into the living room. Ange spotted the suspicious look on Evan's face as her and Dom took the empty mugs to the kitchen.

"Come here" Evan told Chloe,breaking the silence.

"Why?" she questioned

"Cus I love you"

Chloe walked over tentatively. Evan put his arms around her, deliberately applying pressure to her stomach. Ange re entered the room and noticed Chloe wincing when Evan pulled her tight. Dom walked through and glanced knowingly at Ange after seeing the awkward hug. "So how's Lofty?" Ange asked as they broke the hug and sat down.

"He's good. We're good" Dom replied. Evan pulled Chloe's arm onto his lap and gently stroked her shoulder. It was the last test to confirm their hunch. As the random conversation progressed, Evan brushed further down her arm. The other two subtly watched Evan's moves. Evan finally moved down to her wrist and pressed harder. Chloe groaned loudly in pain. Ange raced Chloe to the door just beating her. "You're not leaving" Ange repeated for the second time that day. Chloe was visibly anxious. The men had both stood and were behind Chloe. "Let's just sit back down, eh?" Ange offered. Chloe nodded and the men sat down with Chloe in the middle on the sofa. Ange pulled up a footstool and sat in front of Chloe.

"I trust you, we all do, but arms and stomach please," Ange said kindly. Although both her and Chloe were familiar with their little routine, neither Evan nor Dom were. "No thank you" Chloe responded politely.

"Fine,then. Pockets" Ange commanded

"But there's stuff I don't want Dom to see" Chloe said, referring to the tampon.

"He's a doctor. He's seen it before" Chloe remained perfectly still.

"The boys can hold you down and I'll do it if you prefer"

"No..." Chloe put her hands in her pocket and pulled out her phone and a tissue.

"Anything else?" Ange asked

Chloe pulled out the tampon which made both her and Dom turn bright red.

"Not what I'm on about" Ange knew she had something and was getting slightly frustrated. Chloe's hand tremored as she took out the bloody razor blade.

"Where did you get that?" Dom asked

"It was inside my fluffy socks. Please mum you can't take it, I've had it since I was 15"

"I'll keep it safe. You might get it back when I know you won't use it," Ange told her daughter.

"Now, arms and stomach please." Ange remained polite despite the growing frustration inside her. Chloe didn't speak, move or do anything. "I can get the boys to hold you down" Ange stated sternly. Chloe still didn't move but the tears began to fall. "Hey, it's okay Chlo." Ange's tone was comforting yet firm. Evan and Dom sat helplessly, they both wanted to intervene but it was better to just let Chloe talk to her mum.

After a few minutes of calming words, Chloe had stopped crying. Ange was trying to calm her down. As Ange held her hands, Evan and Dom gently pulled up her sleeves. Ange gently traced patterns on the backs of Chloe's hands while she mentally took note of the 3 new cuts on her right arm. Evan carefully pulled up her hoodie to reveal the long gash on her stomach. It wasn't deep enough to need stitching but it must've really hurt. Dom was shocked by what he saw. When Ange had described the story, he had never in a million years imagined the sheer scale of cuts, scabs and scars. He had seen self harming patients before but his own sister. It hit him on a different level.

As Ange let Chloe's hands fall to her knees, Chloe scurried to pull down her sleeves. She was ashamed of the wounds and what they represented. Her mind was fixated on the voices. "_Rape. Rape. Rape._" they jeered. She could hear her old classmates laughing at her. _I'm not having a panic attack. Please no._ Ange sat back in the armchair. The yelling inside Chloe's head roared as she was pushed further and further to the edge. She finally tipped over, collapsing onto the floor. She was sobbing. Wet,ugly tears fell from her face as she struggled to control her breathing. Both Evan and Ange rushed over to support her. Dom sat awkwardly on the sofa for he felt like neither a Copeland nor a Goddard. "Come on," Ange called, "you're family." Dom joined the hug as Chloe breathed in time with Ange and Evan. Fat tears rolled down Chloe's face. The panic was over but the distress was far from gone.

•••

It was late and Evan and Dom had both gone home. Chloe was tucked up in bed with Ange sat beside her. She ran her fingers through Chloe's hair soothingly. Gently stroking Chloe's face, Ange kissed her good night and turned out the lamp of her sleeping daughter's room. Heading downstairs, Ange took the note out of her coat pocket and change the 4 to '5 on stomach'. She also added a new line for 3 on right wrist. Sighing, Ange wondered why Chloe was so determined to cause herself pain. 'Hopefully Hanssen will be nice about it' Ange thought as she went upstairs to bed.


End file.
